Hong Kong: Coronavirus in an age of distrust
by Tom Warneke
First published 15th April 2020
Asia | Understanding Your World | Fostering Growth & Opportunity
Hong Kong protests have died down in the wake of Coronavirus. Weekly protests that we saw for the final seven months in 2019 are all but gone. Still, the legacy of the 2019 protests continues to be relevant and live even today.
One of the largest legacies of the 2019 protests is the major undermining of political and institutional powers in Hong Kong and the lack of confidence perceived by the hong kong people.
The protests were born from the proposal of the extradition law and ultimately, that the Hong Kong government weren’t acting in the interests of the people. From there, the movement spread and grew into the protests that we saw — predominantly through the parties of the HK police force as well as the hundreds of thousand strong marches that were seen. This ultimately led to a very strong rift between the police force and the population they were meant to serve. That fundamental trust has since been eroded away.
Institutional Distrust
Institution trust is severely eroded. Not just the police force but also the likes of major corporations such as Cathay Pacific, MTR and HSBC. All these were called upon by the Beijing Government in various ways to try and end these protests. MTR was told to close lines and disrupt transport protestors might use, Cathay Pacific were told to crackdown on protest and open free speech. HSBC was told to close accounts that were found to be supporting protestors and legal fees (under the guise of money laundering). Ultimately, this means these big corporations that affect the daily lives of many Hong Kongers became enemies of the people in many ways.
Now coronavirus is here and this mistrust continues. Hong Kong people viewed the Hong Kong government as deferential to Beijing and were criticised for not taking stronger measures. While the virus case rate lowering and fatalities numbering only 4, Hong Kong should be applauded for their efforts, interventions and contract traces — the government efforts are largely unseen.
Unionisation
Unionisation is another faction. Large strikes were often used during the protests to strike and bring the city to a stand-still. The level of trade unionisation is typically low in Hong Kong and the large unions are often pro-Beijing. Late 2019, there was a push to start new unions and enable future action. The fruits of this strategy have been seen such as that of the HK medical workers, where they started striking late January to demand border closures in an attempt to stem the tide of Coronavirus cases coming across the border. This was successful.
Community
Largely, the community takes the credit for the Hong Kong response to coronavirus. Supported greatly by civil society and a strong free and liberal media, issues are discussed strongly in the Hong Kong free press. Academic freedom and key academics from the likes of HK University as well as free spoken medical professionals have all been active and key in not only critiquing the government and furthering a robust response but also ensuring the freedom of information, data and conversation around the outbreak.
In the face of the Coronavirus, Hong Kongers look to the free speech and information available to them compared to that of China and the whistleblowers in Wuhan and subsequently seek to foster a strong independent identity in Hong Kong which they’re proud of.
The sentiment remains
There’s still a strong sentiment that things need to change. While Coronavirus has stopped large scale rallies and protests, there’s a strong push towards smaller communities via the yellow circle economy. This means small neighbourhoods supporting smaller restaurants and shops being supported rather than bigger pro-Beijing monoliths. An invigoration of the grass roots, community level discussion is strong.
The proposed introduction of Hong Kong Basic Law Article 23 brought over 500,000 people in 2003 to the streets in protest of this law.
It states that the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region “shall enact laws on its own to prohibit any act of treason, secession, sedition, subversion against the Central People’s Government, or theft of state secrets, to prohibit foreign political organisations or bodies from conducting political activities in the Region, and to prohibit political organisations or bodies of the Region from establishing ties with foreign political organisations or bodies.”
“There’s discussion around this law being reintroduced which, if so, would no doubt reignite mass protest on the streets.
Do things get picked up from where they were? Does violence escalate? Is the rhetoric escalating? Overall — time will tell as the Coronavirus pandemic clears globally, what comes next for Hong Kong and the protests of 2019.
